More sharply than expected and the second consecutive monthly contraction, the Canadian economy shrank at an annual rate of 0.7% in November, data from Statistics Canada showed on Jan. 30.
The decline was almost twice as deep as forecast and follows a drop in the nation's gross domestic product of 0.1% the previous month.
Manufacturing output, wholesale trade, construction and real estate led the November decrease. Canada's transportation, energy, retail trade, finance and insurance sectors also retreated.
Slight advances in the tourism and agriculture industries, as well as the public sector helped to offset the downturn.
Canada's economy grew by 0.3% in the third quarter of 2008, despite a downturn in consumer spending and a decline in exports.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2009
